NEWARK, NJ, August 19, 2013 - Josh Jackson has been named to the newly-created position of Vice President of Content of WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM, it was announced today by Amy Niles, the station's Acting President and CEO. Jackson, who continues as host of WBGO's hour-long music magazine, The Checkout, was previously Special Projects Producer.

Josh Jackson, WBGO VP of Content

"I am pleased to name Josh as our Vice President of Content," said Niles. "This new position reflects the evolving nature of WBGO as both a creator and distributor of content for our communities of Jazz and News. Josh has a keen understanding and respect for the past, present and future of jazz. He is the personification of WBGO's mission to continue the vibrancy of this music as a cultural art form and his enthusiasm for broadcasting is contagious."

Jackson began his radio career at WWOZ in New Orleans, moved to New York to become the associate producer of Jazz from Lincoln Center with Ed Bradley and joined WBGO in 2001. He has created three multi-platform concert programs, Live at the Village Vanguard, The Checkout: Live at 92Y Tribeca and The Checkout: Live at Berklee, all in partnership with NPR. Jackson has produced award-winning documentaries and hundreds of live concert recordings while at WBGO. He is the co-founder of Joyride Media and the 2010 and 2012 recipient of the Jazz Journalists Association's Willis Conover-Marian McPartland Award for Broadcasting.

Jackson's recent programming initiative is WBGO Radar - a discovery service for new music. Jackson and WBGO Music Director Gary Walker review new recordings and consider them for exclusive debuts at WBGO.org/RADAR.

WBGO presents saxophonist Jaleel Shaw Live from the Red Room at Cafe 939, at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, on Thursday, February 7 at 8 p.m. Shaw will be joined in the concert by fellow Berklee alumnus Lawrence Fields on piano, bassist Boris Kozlov, and drummer Johnathan Blake.

Watch the concert live right here or listen to our on-air stream with host Josh Jackson, and join the conversation below.

If you like what you hear, tune in to WBGO's sister station, The Jazz Bee, to hear recordings by Shaw and other cutting-edge performers. Enjoy!

The Checkout – Live at Berklee brings critically acclaimed, New York-based Berklee alumni back to their alma mater for concerts. Shaw is a member of the Roy Haynes Quartet and the Mingus Big Band, and has performed with Christian McBride, Jason Moran, Stefon Harris, Roy Hargrove, Dave Holland, Jimmy Cobb, and more.

Upon graduating from high school in his native Philadelphia, Shaw received a full-tuition scholarship to attend Berklee, where he graduated with degrees in music education and performance. At Berklee, he received the Billboard Endowed Scholarship, two Woodwind Department Awards, the Outstanding Student Teacher Award, and the Boston Jazz Society Award. Shaw then earned a master's in jazz performance from the Manhattan School of Music in New York.

July 6, 2011. Posted by Brandy Wood.

Last month, The Checkout: Live at 92Y Tribeca made its debut. The first performance in this new series featured Dan Tepfer and Noah Preminger. You can hear excerpts from that performance during The Checkout on July 19, 6:30pm on WBGO Jazz88.3FM and online at wbgo.org.The next installment takes place Tuesday, July 19 at 8pm with Ben Williams Sound Effect and Pedro Giraudo Jazz Orchestra

“By definition the bass player is a pivotal figure in jazz, a steward of tonality as well as tempo. Determining a good one can require close listening: that quality reveals itself in the cohesion of the band as well as in the handling of line and phrase. All of this was accounted for in Mr. Williams’s set, which also involved a pair of harmonically sound original compositions and a balance of tradition and novelty.” -Nate Chinen, New York Times

Washington, DC-born, New York-based bassist Ben Williams’ is celebrating the release of his debut album State of Art out on Concord Jazz. The album is a result of Williams’ first prize in the 2009 Thelonious Monk International Competition for double-bass. Recently, Williams has been touring with vibraphonist Stefon Harris & Blackout, a R&B and hip-hop-tinged group, which calls on Williams’ unique connection with go-go, from his native Washington, DC to inform its sound and pianist Jacky Terrasson’s Trio. State of Art marks Williams’ first album as a leader and features tenor/soprano saxophonist Marcus Strickland, guitarist Matthew Stevens, keyboardist Gerald Clayton, drummer Jamire Williams (who also appeared with the bassist on Terrasson’s Push) and percussionist Etienne Charles, joined on three tracks by alto/soprano saxophonist Jaleel Shaw.

Since his arrival in New York in 1996, Pedro Giraudo has performed and recorded in a wide variety of musical projects and prominent ensembles, ranging from tango to jazz, in addition to his own Pedro Giraudo Jazz Orchestra. He has collaborated with 9-time Grammy® award winner Paquito D’Rivera, Grammy® award winner Pablo Ziegler, Latin American icon Ruben Blades, as well as with Branford Marsalis, Kenny Garrett, Regina Carter, among many others and has performed in venues such as The Blue Note (Japan & USA), Birdland (Austria & USA), Kennedy Center (Washington DC), Iridium, Jazz Standard, Jazz Gallery, Blue Note, Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall (NYC). His latest CD, his fifth, is titled Córdoba — the name of his home city and province in Argentina— released in June 2011 on the ZOHO Music label.

December 23, 2010. Posted by Alex Rodriguez.

WBGO dedicates this week of programming to the memory of Newark native and jazz luminary James Moody, who passed away Thursday, December 9 at the age of 85.

UPDATE: The final segment of our James Moody tribute airs tonight at 8 p.m., 88.3 on your fm dial. Or, have a listen to it here:

As Becca and Brandy have mentioned previously, this week will feature some of our favorite Moody memories as we close out the 2010 broadcasting year (and look forward to Toast of the Nation.)

Tonight at 6:00 p.m., we will air a special edition of JazzSet, recorded for Moody's 80th birthday at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC in 2005. It features some other heavy hitters, too, including Slide Hampton, Paquito D'Rivera, Roy Hargrove and Mulgrew Miller. The show will re-air on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

Tomorrow at noon (right after the news) we will follow up with Piano Jazz, featuring an interview with Moody and the show's always-lovely host, Marian McPartland.

On Thursday, we close out our special coverage with a compilation of Moody interviews from our extensive archives, edited by Simon Rentner. The hour-long feature begins at 8:00 p.m.

Follow the links below for more WBGO coverage celebrating the life and music of James Moody:

WBGO has been truly blessed by Moody's presence for many years -- we're sad to see him go, yet so fortunate to be able to honor his legacy. Join us this week as we celebrate the life of one of one of New Jersey's greatest contributions to jazz history. Please, feel free to share your favorite Moody memories in the comment section below.